Huawei, a leading global ICT solutions provider, announces it will bring at least 100 local students to China within the next 5 years with its Seeds for the Future program. The announcement was done on the occasion of the 10 year anniversary from Huawei in the Netherlands in attendance of the Chinese Ambassador to the Netherlands, Mr. Chen Xu, the Dutch Ambassador to China, Mr. Ron Keller, and T-Mobile Netherlands CEO Mark Klein.

(From L to R) Wonder Wang, Henk van Raan, Xu Chen, Jeroen Burcksen, Mark Klein and Ron Keller

Local contribution

In order to contribute to the local society, Huawei will select 100 students from Dutch universities to go to China in the coming 5 years. In China, the students will receive hands-on experience and gain new ICT expertise at Huawei’s headquarters in Shenzhen. In order to bridge the digital divide and to make sure there will be sufficient ICT knowledge available in the future in the Netherlands, Huawei is committed to promote ICT education and training among the youth.

The Netherlands as gateway to Europe

Huawei established its operations in the Netherlands in 2005 after signing the first significant contract in Europe in the history of the company with Telfort regarding the deployment of the UMTS (3G) network. Since then, the company has grown from 4 to 650 employees and it has built a strong position in the Dutch telecom and ICT market, nowadays connecting more than 10 million people in the Netherlands. Apart from its Carrier Business Group, in which Huawei provides telecom equipment for the networks of telecom operators, Huawei has established its Enterprise Business Group in 2011 to address companies with IT solutions and a Consumer Business Group in 2012 to reach out to consumers with smartphones and tablets.

Digitization of the Netherlands

Huawei is committed to continuing its business in the Netherlands and in the coming years, the company will contribute to the digitization of the Netherlands with its innovative products and solutions. Focus will be on its Smart City solutions, through which it can help cities in improving the quality and intelligence of citizens’ lives, and enhancing environmental protection, public safety urban services and business activities. Huawei has already signed Smart City MoUs with 5 Dutch cities - Amsterdam, The Hague, Tilburg, Groningen and Amstelveen.

Wonder Wang, CEO of Huawei Technologies Netherlands, says: “The Netherlands was the first European country where we have signed a significant contract. For Huawei the Netherlands has been the gateway to Europe and we are very grateful for all the support we have received from our customers, partners and other stakeholders in the last 10 years. We now look forward to the next decades, because we are here to stay and want to contribute even more value to our customers and the local society.

Xu Chen, Ambassador of the People’s Republic China, says: “Huawei’s great performance in the Netherlands has become a successful example for other Chinese investors in the Netherlands and even in Europe. I expect Chinese corporations like Huawei will grow sustainably in the Netherlands. I hope the Netherlands and China will have more practical cooperation, mutual benefits and win-win results, taking the example of Huawei.”

Mark Klein, CEO of T-Mobile Netherlands, says: “In 2012 we decided to build the best network of The Netherlands with the best frequencies and the highest number of antennas. At that time, we were very much aware that the best network could only be achieved by the cooperation between two companies with a focus on state of the art technology and that company is Huawei. Without them this could never have been such a success and now that best network allows us to be a game-changer to our customers.”

Henk van Raan, Director Facility Management / New Business Development of Amsterdam ArenA, says: “Innovation cannot be achieved alone and the best creations are results of a cooperative effort with innovation partners such as Huawei. With Huawei we deployed a state of the art Wi-Fi network in the Amsterdam ArenA and it became the best connected stadium in the Netherlands. Together we want to be leading in Smart Stadium and city developments and together we create the stadium of the future.”

The company’s anniversary was celebrated with over 900 customers, long time partners, employees and people who have supported Huawei over the past decade.